The Girl from 10
by ANunez123
Summary: This is the story of Isis Oxen who ended up in the eighteenth hunger games for doing something illegal. She is planning on her district having a victor this year,but she had the misfortune to go in with her best friend. She may not be the bravest of all,but she can figure things out which help her along the way.
1. Chapter 1

My stomach flips in weird ways as the pedestal rises. What could be waiting for me beyond this point? A desert? Woods? A pole? I doubt it, not dressed in these clothes. Black tank top, tight pants of the same material and mid-calf high boots. I look up and rays of light blind me. My first thought is, nothingness. An arena where there's nothing, just a white place with nothing else but us.

My thoughts are completely wrong. Not a desert, not woods, not a freezing pole and sure enough not a white nothing. Trees, water, tall grass, the Cornucopia. The twenty-four pedestals are in a circle of water surrounding the land strip where the Cornucopia sits spitting out our supplies for the arena.

The Cornucopia. A gold horn with a curved tail towards the sky. With a mouth of at least twenty feet high, spilling over everything we'll need to survive in the arena. Backpacks with supplies, weapons, food, sleeping bags, fire starters and who knows what else. The closer to the horn, the more valuable the supplies are. Most of the tributes that aren't Careers don't risk getting to close because those who are, are the most dangerous and do get inside the horn. It sits in a perfect circle of land.

The next thing I take notice of is the water where the pedestals are. Water. How can we get past this, who knows, this might be filled with all kinds of dangers, if not then maybe it has an incredible depth that most of us would drown. Only the District 4 tributes might be able to get to the Cornucopia faster than any other or maybe one or two other tribute from another district that has learned to swim. But I doubt it.

One minute is how long we have to stand here. Whoever steps off before the minute is over will be blown off to pieces, but I don't know by what because the only thing that can cause that are landmines and the land might be yards down.

I catch a glimpse of a knife vest a few feet away from the mouth of the Cornucopia, luckily there aren't many things on the way, so it's pretty much an easy path. I might be able to get there fast, considering the fact that most of the tributes won't risk it going in the water. But will someone attack me when I try to escape? I don't know, I don't care, but I have to risk it.

The minute is up and like I predicted, both tributes from 4, Aquata and I think the boy's name is Azul, they dive. Also Ember, the little girl from 12, she doesn't dive but throws herself in the water. Because of her I can tell the depth of the water at first but then she starts to swim. In a second I see Rancher trying to get through the water which by now is at mid-chest, then I throw myself.

My hair floats and the water is up to my neck, I don't have to tippy-toe my way through. Rancher is still not there yet but he isn't so far. Most of the tributes are still stuck on their pedestals but the Cornucopia blocks out many from the other side. I flip and flap my hands everywhere. Rancher is already there, dripping and running towards the weapons.

I reach the strip of land exhausted, but I take every last bit of energy in me and run. I see Rancher as he yanks a knife out of a boy's neck, and incredible amount of blood gushes out of the wound. I shake my head and keep on running towards my target, the vest.

I throw myself and grab it, but sure I scrapped my knees in the process. _What else, Isis, what else? Think!_ I demand an answer from myself, in a moment like this where your life is at risk, it's quite difficult to. Wait. A backpack, more weapons, really anything I can get my hands on I'm sure will help me.

I sprint towards a backpack right at the entrance of the Cornucopia, better than any farther from it. Others are far inside with the most valuable weapons in their hands. Some are simply fighting inside. As I'm about to reach for it, someone tackles me, hitting the floor plain with my guts, leaving me breathless. I turn around and the boy , I think from 8, is poised to stab my somewhere. But no, he falls flat on to the side as an arrow finds home in his right temple.

Arrows. Rancher. Someone has already got the bow and arrows, poor Rancher, that was technically his only main weapon with which he can kill without a doubt. But then I see him about twenty yards away holding his silver bow loaded to attack anyone again. Wow. I never thought this about him, he's already killed two.

"Hurry!" he runs up to me and I grab the backpack "someone was following me!" he sounds alert.

But a second later an axe comes flying and digs in the Cornucopia. That boy from 7, he's flawless when it comes to those stupid axes. We throw ourselves to the ground. Rancher's arrow finds his thigh, which gives us advantage to run. "Go find something else and _run_!" I scream over to Rancher. When I say _run_ there's a slight fear in the word.

I launch the backpack over one shoulder. And I also find another set of knives and throw it inside it, as well as a sickle. I see Rancher has already made it to the tall grass behind the water; he's perched to attack any minute. With the hope of getting the hell out of here, I only look at him while running. But to my luck, I strike into some.

The girl from 7, the axe thrower boy's district partner. In a second she is dead after I gruesomely stab her repeatedly. Then I recuperate my pace and jump into the water. Surprisingly there's a small boy still stuck on his pedestal, I wish I could just save him but no, whether it's Rancher or me, District 10 _will_ have its victor this year.

I freak out when I come across a tributes corpse with a blood-bed around. I just push her to the side and flap through the red liquid. There goes any slight thought of thinking about using this water to drink. _Ignore the blood_, I tell myself, _keep paddling._

As I accomplish my goal to get passed the water, Rancher reaches for me. He helps me out of the water and into the tall grass, which is up to my neckline, taller than various tributes. That's when I notice that my hands, arms, neck even my hair a clothes are filled with the girl's blood. "Come on" he grunts as he tries to lift me up. He grabs my hand ready to run but I detain him.

"I never told you, Gleam and Gem invited me to join the pack this year, and they also said you can be in it" I explain and he just looks out of place. I explain the situation and when it happened. I go back to the second day of training; Rancher was learning to throw spears, which I think he didn't accomplish much since he wasn't very good at it. Gleam called me while I was throwing my knives, and alongside with Gem invited me. "I told them I would tell you but, you know me, I have a horrible memory". That was about an hour before Gleam told Rancher that he was good with a bow and arrows.

"Ok, fine. But only because I might help us get sponsors since we won't get many, or any, by ourselves" he agrees but not entirely.

For about ten more minutes we watch tributes running around killing each other. I can't tell who is who because of the distance, plus like Selby used to say, I'm an old woman when it comes to see things. The memories of her saying that makes me smile. Even Rancher with his good seeing skills squints his eyes a handful of times. But, whenever I ask him who it is, he's not sure.

Gleam is the first one of the Careers to get out of the bloodbath and find us, for a tribute from another district besides 4, he's a good swimmer. We reach out to help him out of the bloody water. "Wow, looks like you killed half of the dead tributes" he refers to all the blood I have in me, I smile. Then he looks up at Rancher and smiles, but my friend is suddenly distracted by something. I turn and see Mortar, stuck on the water, knee high for him.

Rancher throws himself in, and even in the deepest part he can still tippy toe and the water only reaches his jaw. He gets through the water easier than I. He carries Mortar and accommodates him on his back. Coming back it's harder for him with Mortar's weight on his back. They both have blood on them, but I know it's from the water, and Mortar has on his face like someone splashed it on. The kid won't even kill a fly, so it has to be something else.

Azul get's to us after Gem and Aquata. Wow. We're seven already but who I don't see coming is Belie, but when I ask Gem says that some boy killed her, but I look at Mortar since they're district partners, but he seems to be entertained with a handful of grass he must've ripped out while we talked. There's something odd about him, but it's not time to think about that.

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story/6003914-the-girl-from-10


	2. Chapter 2

After ten torturous minutes of running we come to a stop. We find a lake with grass surrounding it. When I see it I just _run_. I kneel beside it and the others follow. Splashing water in our faces and for some of us, taking the blood out. It feels amazing to have it off, although I have small scabs under the hidden blood, maybe from scratching myself raw from other nights.

Rancher takes his boots and socks off. Instead of putting his feet in the water he splashes some into them, sighing like it's heaven. Then he fills the bottles with water but puts a drop of iodine in each of them. Mortar starts to slap the water and it splashes some on Azul who gets mad. "I told you to stop!" he pushes Mortar in the water. "Her death was your fault you idiot child you should've died instead of her!" he yells at Mortar.

This angers me but Rancher reacts faster. He punches Azul making him crash into the floor with a bloody nose. I see Rancher yank a knife from his jacket. But, Gleam breaks in and holds Rancher back. And Gem stops Azul from standing. I walk over to him and whisper in his ear "put it away!" he doesn't react "put…it…away!" he does. The audience must be enjoying themselves watching two tributes in an alliance turn against each other.

Rancher walks over to Mortar and takes him out of the water. The others go and start preparing a fire. We take Mortar's shirt off and place a sleeping bag over him, we put a pair of socks on his hands trying to keep him warm but it's no use, the poor kid is shaking. We just take him over to the fire and try to dry his shirt, when it is we put it on him and he says it feels warm. We give him a sleeping bag because his pants and socks are still wet.

"I'll keep watch with Azul" says Rancher.

"No, I said I would" I insist.

"I don't trust him, not after what he did to Mortar. Besides, I lost all my sleep in the last half hour" he tells me. I yawn. "You see" he smiles. I don't argue because it's no use, he always wins. I lay next to the fire; the temperature tonight has dropped a few degrees.

I fall into an abyss of sleep in a matter of minutes. It's very uncomfortable sleeping in the plain dirt, but it's not like we have a choice. The bloodbath still haunts me, I see that boy that attacked me, fall dead with an arrow in his head. I also killed the girl from 7 but apparently it doesn't affect me as much since it was just stabbing.

When I rouse the sun is already out, and it's hot enough to melt a rock. I yawn and stretch, and Rancher just breaks out laughing at me saying I sound like a baby horse. I just laugh at his statement. Someone went out and found some berries, which apparently are safe to eat because Gem throws a handful in her mouth. Who ever found them got enough for all of us to fill ourselves up. They are bitter-sweet, finger nail size and dark orange. I've never seen them, must be something else the Capitol invented.

With the sun as hot as it is we decide to stick around the water for now unless we have to move. I don't think the Gamemakers will risk it having us here for so long and nothing happening which will bore the Capitol viewers. _Wouldn't want that to happen now would they?_, I say to myself.

Who knows, one minute the tributes are calm and the other they are running from some lighting storm that each ray hits the ground. This happened last year. Wherever the lighting hit, it set it on fire, it didn't hit one single tribute which im pretty sure was the Gamemakers point. After is stopped, there was enough fire for the whole day. The arena was a redwood forest, I think.

A flock of birds distract me of my thoughts. They have a bright plumage like the one on my interview dress, but I doubt they have the same design as the ones on my tribute parade costume. Rancher shoots two and they fall with the arrows pierced in their bodies. One falls right outside the water and the other one a few feet in. We clap at his nice shooting skills.

Rancher walks over to the first bird and takes the arrow out and walks in and grabs the other one. But he freezes as if he's seen something he takes a few steps back. In a matter of seconds he takes an arrow from his quiver and shoots something, then he makes a run toward us. "Run!" he screams "run!"

Then I see it. Behind him three animals which im guessing are crocodiles are coming. They have a long body and tail, piercing red eyes and sharp teeth that come out of their mouth. But they have a weird shade of green, not the usual moss green, but a much lighter, like lime green. Another Capitol mutt.

We don't hesitate after seeing the creatures. But almost here Rancher falls but instantly turns and shoots another crocodile and it falls dead a second after. _They're weak_, I think. That gives him time to recover his speed.

We run back into the woods but who knows where we're going we're just running for our lives. But then I realize somewhere that is somewhat safe for us. "The Cornucopia" I yell "let's go to the horn". I think it's dumb to say but it's easy to get there since it's in the center of the arena. It takes about twenty minutes of running. This must be intense for the viewers since the mutts are still after us.

To read more go to: story/6003914-the-girl-from-10


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